A poll of 1,000 biomedical scientists conducted by Nature examining the impact of animal rights activism finds that nearly one-fourth of all respondents say they or someone else they know has been affected by animal rights activism in a negative way. Extreme attacks are generally rare.

The majority (90%) of the biomedical scientists polled in this study say that the use of animals in research is essential, though 16% say they have misgivings about it. Of respondents who had been negatively affected by activism, 15% say they changed their research as a result.

In addition, nearly three-fourths (70%) say that the polarized nature of the subject makes it difficult to express a “nuanced” opinion about the subject; one-fourth said training and assistance in communication about the importance of animal research is available within their organizations. Slightly more than half (55%) of researchers said that their organizations encourage communication with the public about their work, while 7% said this was discouraged.

Moreover, in direct relation to their work, one-third of respondents said they had “ethical concerns” about the use of animals in their current work; 16% reported “misgivings” about work they had done, half of these respondents changing their research or practices as a result.